You may not realize it but your prized betta is aging right before your very eyes. Well, okay not exactly. But close enough. And given they don’t come with a birth certificate you really have no idea how old they are when you first lay eyes on them. Some Petco bettas might only be about six months old. Others on display at Walmart may be 15 months old. Or visa-versa. Or anything in between. Which is to say unless you are buying from a breeder who knows the age of the spawn that produced your veil tailed beauty you have no way of knowing how old the fish is when you bring him or her home.
So the pace of decline as your fish ages may be faster or slower depending on that unknown starting point. But given they may live four or five years under the best of circumstances the speed at which they age is still going to be fairly rapid. So much so you’ll sooner or later recognize they aren’t the fish they once were. Having slipped from robust enthusiasm to a more staid lifestyle more befitting middle age and then the golden senior years.
So do you suspect you have noticed signs that your betta is aging? If you answered not yet maybe you want to what are they and what should you look for? To help with that let’s compare the reality then and the reality now so you’ll know how to recognize what’s going on with your betta fish’s ticking biological clock.
Bubble nesting
Reality Then: When you first brought your finny friend home they probably displayed real nest building zeal. They may not have been blowing bubbles nonstop but some days is sure seemed like it, am I right? But back then they were likely in their breeding prime. And one never knows when a female may happen by who is ready, willing, and able to make a love connection, if you would. Your boy had no idea odds of that happening in their five gallon world were slim to none. Hence a bubble nest building we do go just in case.
Reality Now: Bubble nest? What’s that? Okay so it not like someone flips a switch and the nest building activity ceases. But the fervor with which the process proceeds does tend to diminish over time. Which is only natural. As bettas age the urge to prepare to mate naturally diminishes too.
Flaring
Reality Then: Anything that could be a threat was flare worthy what with machismo bred into these fish. It might be your finger. It might be his image in a mirror. It might be the cory in his tank that dared dart off the bottom. Besides when you’re young and viral there’s territory to defend. And a physical verbal cue used to do that in a betta’s world is by flaring.
Reality Now: Flaring? Not so much. Rather than dash to rise to the occasion your betta might glide over to investigate first. Because constant flaring takes energy. It can wear a boy out. Over time your pet may find better ways to expend their energy than by flaring at anything that might be a threat.
Colors on Display
Reality Then: The finned one initially put on quite a display without even trying. In some cases the colors of their body and fins might rival a 4th of July fireworks display.
Reality Now: Like it or not, just as human males lose their hair, betta males experience a subtle dulling of their colors over time. Not that they go pallid gray on you. But some of the eye catching brightness these boys display naturally is going to diminish over time.
But relax. None of this is to suggest your fish is ready to cash in their chips any time soon. But as we age our ability to maintain the vigor of youth passes. The key is to enjoy your betta fish as they change. Sure they may not dance like a whirling dervish at the sight of you like they did before. But that’s not to say you still can’t enjoy their more sedate behavior which now more rarely rises to the occasion than previously.